


Voltron Legendary Café

by acrylic_gold



Series: Legendary Cafe! [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Barista Keith (Voltron), Barista Lance (Voltron), Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Cuban Lance (Voltron), Galra Keith (Voltron), Multi, klance, pining lance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-09
Updated: 2018-05-09
Packaged: 2019-05-04 10:20:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14590923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/acrylic_gold/pseuds/acrylic_gold
Summary: The Voltron: Legendary Cafe had started off as a small and quaint cafe in the city of Altea, founded by longtime friends Alfor White and Coran Smythe. It only took fifteen years later and the cafe was now growing in popularity and fame thanks to their quirky employees, also known as the ‘paladins’.- A series of oneshots about the paladins (and the relationship between a certain red and blue duo) -





	Voltron Legendary Café

**Author's Note:**

> wowo im back with another fic!! i've been incredibly busy, i really wanted to write this quick oneshot (thanks to an idea i had from the wonderful Nagi ) and i can hopefully continue the series if people like it enough (and if i have the time to write more)
> 
> also i deleted the acrylic_gold tumblr and im working on a new blog instead)
> 
>  
> 
> as always, comments/kudos/etc. are always greatly appreciated!! 
> 
> enjoy! x
> 
>  
> 
> ~~~~~~~~~~

“Well, mornin’ there cowboy, how are you doing this fine Tuesday?”

 

Keith only responded with a noncommittal hum. He stared off at the window on the other side of the cafe, brows creased and a look that screamed _do not talk to me–_ but to Lance this translated as _pre-coffee Keith_. With a small nod, Lance started brewing up a drink.

“You know, Keith,” Lance spoke as he waited for the coffee machine to warm up, “it might be a good idea to have your coffee _before_ customers come in. You don’t want to scare any off more than usual.” Keith couldn’t help but roll his eyes at the comment.

“Hm.” The shorter man looked over at Lance, and It was then that the taller man could see the full extent of Keith’s exhausted expression. Paler skin, dark circles under his eyes, and a frown that looked permanent and eyes that (not that Lance was paying attention or anything!) seemed to lose their little sparkle. He promptly looked away, and focused on the espresso.

“Damn, dude. You alright there? You look like you haven’t slept at all.”

“Very funny, Lance.” Hand’t his co-worker mentioned off-handedly that he was an insomniac? Well, it must have been a particularly bad night. Lance’s thoughts moved to his sister, who also had insomnia. Needless to say, it drove their mother nuts when she would come across Veronica at 3am, still reading her book and insisting she couldn’t sleep…oh right, the coffee’s done. He stirred in two packets of sugar and handed the drink over to the other man.

“Here you go, dude. Drink this before you bite someone’s head off,” Lance said with a small smirk. His jaw dropped when Keith conveyed his thanks with a small quirk of his mouth– _WAS THAT A SMILE?_ He didn’t seem to notice Lance’s shock as he gulped back his coffee and let out a small sigh when he was done (just how he likes it: an americano with two packs of sugar and a little cold water so he could drink it straight away). The coffee seemed to act like fuel to a car, and Keith suddenly became more animated. He looked at Lance with steely determination -and yep, the eye sparkles are back - and dumped his empty cup in the trash can.

“Let’s get today over and done with.”

 

- **\----**

Like every other day in _Voltron: Legendary Cafe_ , it got busy as hell. And why? The Paladins (that is, the staff,) seemed to be a big part of it. Each paladin (employee) seemed to gain a reputation and so, apart from the amazing drinks and food, each customer was greeted with a unique personality. Allura White, the current co-owner after her father, was the ‘princess’ of the paladins. Graceful, and stunningly beautiful, she was a favourite for a lot of customers. Her charming English accent seemed to win over any disgruntled customers. Takashi Shirogane was the team big brother figure. His startlingly handsome and muscular appearance contrasted with his warm and friendly personality. Hunk Garret was the master chef of the cafe and also the cafe sweetheart. He was known as the sweetest of all the staff and made the most delightful food. Even Rordorn Gamsay, an internationally famous chef, had complimented his food. Pidge Gunderson was a genius yet mystery to the customers. She was a favourite among mathematics and astronomy enthusiasts, and during breaks she would often sit with students from universities and colleges to talk about theories (if she wasn’t hacking a governmentpage, but no one else except the paladins had to know about that). Lance McClain was, without a doubt, the heartthrob of the paladins. His handsome face, well executed fashion and ability to charm (nearly) everyone, he was a particular favourite for a lot of the women who came into the cafe.

Keith was an interesting figure among the paladins. Not only was he someone Lance was unable to charm (yet), but he also had the reputation of being the most hotheaded. Whilst Allura was frustrated at first for his bad attitude with a difficult customer, the incident soon became an online (and news) sensation when a video of Keith angrily confronting at a customer for being difficult (and trust me, she _was_ ) and told her to get out. Instead of receiving a lot of backlash, there was a tremendous amount of support for the staff (particularly) Keith and, strangely, a lot of people appreciating how _funny_ this guy actually was. After that incident, the small and quaint cafe soon grew to fame around the city and other neighbouring cities. However, Keith wasn’t as angry as people thought when they met him in person. He would definitely show his frustrations with annoying customers, and he didn’t make an effort to hide his tiredness, but apart from that he just seemed like a regular, socially awkward guy. Lance soon learned that Keith only got angry when a customer was being horrible to the staff or others, and although it was a rare occurrence for customers to be particularly unpleasant, it was certainly a sight to see.

**\-----**

It was afternoon and finally the rush-hour of lunch-time customers was finally dying. Lance was talking happily with a customer about art supplies.

 “Yeah, watercolors have always been really beautiful to me, y’know? They’re really nice. I just never got the hang of using them so well and,” he picked up a cup and sharpie pen, “what’s you’re name, sweetheart?”

“Nagi.”

 “Nagi? A lovely name! Anyways, what were you telling me about…Koh-pic markers was it?”

Keith rolled his eyes as he made the drink for the customer. Lance really loved to talk to all of his customers and share stories, the only time he couldn’t was during rush-hour periods. He seemed so interested in what people had to say, and always had a pleasant time talking to regulars. He sighed. He sometimes wished he wasn’t so awkward and could talk to people like he did. Don’t get him wrong, Keith could handle himself in a conversation with customers if he really wanted to, and he has in the past. He just tends to feel a little overwhelmed when it’s busy or if there’s several things going on at once, so he doesn’t talk much (which he fears comes across as rude, but people seem to just accept it).

 The customer had gone to take a seat with their drink and Lance had stretched while letting out a quiet, happy ‘woop!’ Once the customer line was officially empty.

 “Well, looks like we have a little time to ourselves after you give Nagi their scone.”

“Their what.” Keith stared at him with a deadpan expression.

 “The scone. That was ordered. With the drink.” He handed the plate to the frustrated looking barista. “Well,” Lance said while patting the top of Keith’s head lightly, “good luck.”

 Keith muttered angrily under his breath and marched over to the table. Nagi, the customer, looked up and nearly jumped out of their seat when they saw an annoyed looking Keith at the table, holding a plate with a scone.

“Your scone.” He placed it gently on the table, “enjoy.”

“Thank you, er-Keith.”

He was about to leave, excited to finally be getting a break until he saw sketchbooks and Copic markets on the table.

 “Um, they’re cool.”

“Huh?”

“The Copics. I have them too." 

“Really?” The customer stared with eyes wide. “I didn’t know you like to draw!”

“Sometimes, it’s relaxing.” _C’mon Keith, what to say next?_ “Who’s that you’ve drawn there?”

 

Ten minutes later Lance had to practically drag Keith away so he could resume working. He couldn’t help but smile while watching Keith talk happily with a customer. Sure, he wasn’t smiling widely or gesturing his arms wildly, but he was definitely more relaxed than usual and gave the smallest smile at times. It was really sweet watching Keith open up to others.

 “So, did you enjoy your conversation there, buddy?” Lance grinned as he stood with Keith behind the counter, cleaning the surfaces. Keith hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

“Yeah. We talked about cool stuff.”

“You looked like you were having fun.” Lance couldn’t help but sound fond in his tone. A little bit of him hoped that Keith wouldn’t pick up on it. From his lack of a reaction to what Lance was saying, it didn’t seem like it.

“Yeah, we talked about art and things.”

And for a good five minutes, the two talked about art supplies and artists and comics. Lance wasn’t aware that Keith was so interested in art, but his personal mission to get to know his red-paladin co-worker only grew stronger.

 

**\-----**  

It was finally time for Lance and Keith to leave their shift. Lance had finished buttoning up his light blue shirt in the staff room while Keith just shoved on his hoodie and was about to leave through the back door before Lance called out to him. He turned to him with a curious expression and spoke with a softer tone.

“What is it, Lance?”

“I um..” Lance struggled a little more to get the words out. Funny how Keith had that sort of effect on him. “I was gonna say, I enjoyed our little conversation about art. We should talk about it again, if we have time…if you want.”

It was silent for a few moments while Keith seemed to think over Lance’s words. He soon came to a conclusion in his mind and nodded his head. And for the first time, Keith gave a genuine, happy smile.

“Yeah. I like the sound of that. See you later, Lance.”

Lance stood, unable to say a word and was only snapped out of his trance-like state at the sound of the door closing. He turned back to his locket to grab his things, hearing the telltale sounds of Keith’s motorcycle leaving the carpark. He exited out the back door, happy to be greeted with warm sunshine and a gentle cooling breeze. Walking home, he couldn’t help but have his mind preoccupied with those last few minutes in the cafe.

 

_…At me! He smiled…at me. Keith SMILED. At me. He…He…_

 

And if Lance couldn’t help but daydream of of handsome smiles and captivating violet eyes for the rest of the day, then no one else had to know.

 

 

END.

**Author's Note:**

> Well, thats that fic done!! please excuse any typos, errors, etc. (this is like.. the first draft.)
> 
> anways, i hope you enjoyed the story and would love to know if you want me to continue!!


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